China says its 'moderate' defense spending rises are no threat

China's "moderate" defense spending rises in the past few years have been to make up for past deficiencies and the country's military will not threaten anyone, a senior diplomat said on Sunday ahead of the release of the defense budget. How much China spends on its armed forces is closely watched around the region and in Washington for pointers about the country's broader strategic intentions amid an impressive modernization program that has included developing stealth fighters, aircraft carriers and anti-satellite missiles. Last year military spending was budgeted to increase by just 7 percent, to 1.044 trillion yuan ($164.60 billion) about one-quarter of the proposed U.S. defense spending for the year.

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